President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) releases report assessing H1N1 preparations

A Presidential advisory group released a report assessing the Obama Administration’s preparations for the expected fall resurgence of H1N1 virus and outlining key steps officials can take to minimize the virus’s impact on the nation.

The report concludes that the 2009 H1N1 virus will most likely not resemble the pandemic of 1918-1919 however, it “poses a serious health threat” to the nation when compared to the benign swine flu from 1976. The H1N1 virus is not deadlier than previous viruses, rather it affects more people because it is a new virus that few people have immunity to.

The group lists several prime recommendations including: accelerating the preparation of flu vaccines for distribution to high-risk individuals; clarifying guidelines for the use of antiviral medicines; upgrading the current system for tracking the pandemic’s progress and making resource allocation decisions; accelerating the development of communication strategies—including Web-based social networking tools—to broadcast public health messages that can help mitigate the pandemic’s impact; and identifying a White House point person with primary authority to coordinate key decisions across the government as the pandemic evolves.
For more about PCAST, visit: http://www.ostp.gov/cs/pcast.

The Obama administration is already taking action based on the recommendations of PCAST. The CDC is expected to release revised flu treatment guidelines by the end of the month.

At the same time, problems with vaccine production are arising. The government expected to have 120 million vaccines available October 15th, however it now estimates it will only have 45 million vaccines ready and 20 million more would be ready each week through the end of December.